Guilty plea in illegal firearm exports to Ukraine

The Justice Department said Edison, N.J. resident Gene Shilman now faces up to five years in jail for violating the Arms Export Control Act.

The Justice Department said Gene Shilman, 62, of Edison, N.J. faces up to five years in prison after pleading guilty on Wednesday in a Newark federal court to one count of conspiracy to illegally export firearms from the U.S. to the Ukraine.
In not securing an export license from the Commerce Department, Shilman conspired to violate the Arms Export Control Act, the International Emergency Economic Powers Act and the Export Control Reform Act.
According to the Justice Department, Shilman made the illicit exports between May 2014 and October 2018. These shipments included various firearms components and parts, ammunition, night-vision goggles and bulletproof vests, which he received from various U.S. vendors. He received payment via overseas wire transfers.
In September, Shilman raised suspicions when he completed a customs declaration form at a U.S. Post Office in Middlesex County, N.J., on which he falsely stated the contents in the Ukraine-bound parcel.
“An inspection of the parcel revealed that it actually contained multiple upper receivers, ammunition magazines and threaded barrels for handguns and a set of front and rear sights for a handgun,” the Justice Department said.

Located in the Washington, D.C. area, Chris Gillis primarily reports on regulatory and legislative topics that impact cross-border trade. He joined American Shipper in 1994, shortly after graduating from Mount St. Mary’s College in Emmitsburg, Md., with a degree in international business and economics.